Aramco and IBM announced preliminary plans for a strategic collaboration to establish an Innovation Hub in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.

The partnership aims to support high-tech driven economic growth in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia leveraging emerging technologies in hybrid cloud, AI, and quantum computing to address objectives including circular economy, materials science, supply chain, sustainability, and digitization.

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Ahmad Al Sa’adi, Aramco Senior Vice President of Technical Services, said: “The strategic collaboration of Aramco’s leadership with IBM’s enhanced technologies, R&D, and deep expertise, aspires to achieve potential breakthroughs in the energy sector that will have industry-wide impact. 

"Through this collaboration, we are seeking to leverage the next frontiers in computing to drive economic growth and enable decarbonization through digital technologies.”

While Saad Toma, General Manager, IBM Middle East and Africa commented: “Through this strategic collaboration with Aramco, we aim to reinforce our commitment to be part of the Kingdom’s future by aligning with its 2030 vision for a digital led economy.

“This collaboration aims to help develop local skills and talent with the knowledge and expertise needed to build this vision for the future using IBM technologies and expertise.”

As part of the plans,  Aramco and IBM will collaborate to identify potential opportunities for the application of technologies to address sustainability challenges.

The aim is to accelerate the exploration of climate mitigation and adaption solutions using hybrid cloud, AI, and other emerging technologies, to help improve carbon emission performance and prepare enterprises for the impact of climate change.

The planned Innovation Hub aims to bring together IBM Consulting and Technology experts to work alongside Aramco experts in identifying novel and potentially impactful uses of technology, showcasing viability through an agile iterative approach, and then scaling these innovations. 

This center is one of the first in the region that will apply the IBM Garage methodology to co-create and co-develop digital solutions with Aramco and others in the region. 

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